Traci McCormick, MD

02/18/2026

You can walk out of your doctor's office with a clean bill of health and still be years into the process of developing heart disease. Nobody tells you this. In my last post I talked about the 45% of women over 20 who are living with cardiovascular disease and don't know it, and I told you exactly what tests to ask for at your next appointment. Today I'm going to show you why those tests matter.

Here's what's happening right now in doctors' offices across the country.
Your doctor orders a basic lipid panel. Total cholesterol, LDL, HDL, triglycerides. The results come back and everything looks fine. Maybe your LDL is a little high, but nothing alarming. You're told to watch your diet and come back in a year.

Your doctor isn't doing anything wrong. She's following the current standard of care. The problem is that the standard of care isn't enough.

A basic lipid panel only shows you part of the picture. It doesn't tell you how many atherogenic particles are actually in your blood. It doesn't measure inflammation. It doesn't show you whether plaque is already forming. It doesn't catch insulin resistance in its early stages.

An advanced lipid panel plus the right cardiac and metabolic markers tells you what's actually happening. And most of the time, those tests are never ordered unless you ask.

🩺 Here are the tests that you need and how they should be interpreted for the most proactive approach to your heart health:

❤️ ApoB (Apolipoprotein B)
Your doctor looks at your lipid panel and says your LDL is 120. Borderline, but fine. What she doesn't tell you is that two women with an LDL of 120 can have completely different risks depending on how many LDL particles they actually have.

Standard LDL measures the weight of the cholesterol in your blood. ApoB counts the particles. It's the difference between knowing the total weight of cars on the highway versus knowing how many cars are actually on the road. More particles means more opportunity for plaque to form, even when your LDL looks normal.

I have seen women with "normal" LDL and an ApoB over 120. That is high risk. And they had no idea because nobody tested for it.

✅ Optimal goal: under 90 mg/dL for most women, under 70 mg/dL if you're focused on long-term cardiovascular protection.

❤️ Lp(a) (Lipoprotein little a)
This one is genetically driven. It has nothing to do with your diet, your exercise, or how clean you eat. If your Lp(a) is elevated, you have a significantly higher risk of early heart attack or stroke regardless of how healthy your lifestyle is.

The frustrating part is that there is no medication that effectively lowers it. The important part is that knowing your Lp(a) changes how aggressively you need to manage every other risk factor. If your Lp(a) is high, your LDL needs to be lower. Your blood pressure needs to be tighter. Your inflammation needs to be controlled.

What does that look like in practice? It means your LDL goal drops from 100 to 70 or lower. It means you treat even borderline high blood pressure instead of waiting to see if it gets worse. It means you prioritize anti-inflammatory strategies like regular exercise, omega-3s, and eliminating processed foods. Lp(a) may be genetic, but how you manage everything else around it is entirely within your control.

You only need to test this once in your lifetime. Most women have never had it checked.

✅ Optimal goal: under 30 mg/dL or under 75 nmol/L.

❤️ Coronary Artery Calcium (CAC) Score
This is not a blood test. It's a 10-minute CT scan that shows the actual calcium deposits in your arteries right now. A score of zero in a woman with borderline cholesterol is reassuring. A score of 200 in a woman whose routine labs looked fine changes everything. I covered this in detail in my last post, but it's worth mentioning here because it's the only test that moves you from estimating risk to actually seeing what's happening in your body.

✅ Optimal goal: zero is ideal, but the score needs to be interpreted in the context of your age and other risk factors.

❤️ Highly Sensitive CRP (hs-CRP)
Cardiovascular disease is an inflammatory process. Your arteries do not just clog up like a sink. They get damaged, inflamed, and then plaque forms in response to that inflammation. hs-CRP measures the level of systemic inflammation in your body.

If your hs-CRP is elevated, something is driving chronic inflammation and your cardiovascular risk goes up significantly. It does not show up on a standard lipid panel. Most women have never had it checked.

✅ Optimal goal: under 1.0 mg/L
❤️ Homocysteine
Elevated homocysteine damages the lining of your blood vessels and accelerates plaque formation. It is an independent cardiovascular risk marker that almost never shows up on routine panels.

The good news is that it is often correctable with targeted B6, B12, and folate supplementation. But you cannot fix what you do not measure.

✅ Optimal goal: under 10 umol/L.

These are the markers that show you what is already happening in your arteries and what is driving the inflammation and damage that leads to plaque. Tomorrow I'll walk you through the metabolic markers your standard panel is missing, the ones that catch insulin resistance, thyroid dysfunction, and deficiencies years before they become crises.

📋 Bring this to your next appointment. If your doctor says these tests aren't necessary, ask why. A good physician will explain their reasoning and help you understand your individual risk. If the conversation feels dismissive or you're not getting the answers you need, it's okay to seek a second opinion or find a provider who practices the kind of preventive medicine you're looking for.

You deserve a partner in your health, not a gatekeeper.

02/17/2026

45%. That is the number we need to talk about today.

Nearly 45% of women over the age of 20 are living with some form of cardiovascular disease, according to the American Heart Association’s latest “Go Red for Women” report. And most of them have no idea.
That means nearly half the women reading this post right now may already have cardiovascular disease and have never been told. Not because the warning signs weren’t there. Because nobody ordered the right tests.

That ends today.

For decades, heart disease has been branded as a “man’s disease.” Because of this, women have been conditioned to believe their symptoms are just “anxiety,” “stress,” “exhaustion,” or “hormones.” Chest pain gets dismissed. Fatigue gets attributed to being busy. Shortness of breath gets chalked up to stress. Meanwhile, cardiovascular disease is the number one killer of women, claiming more lives than all forms of cancer combined.

You don’t need permission to prioritize your health. You need a provider who listens, and you need to walk into your next appointment knowing exactly what to ask for.

What standard guidelines recommend:

Current guidelines from the American Heart Association recommend that women receive a basic lipid panel, blood pressure screening, and blood glucose check beginning around age 20 and every four to six years if results are normal. That is it. That is the standard of care most women are receiving today.

And for many women, that is not enough.
A standard lipid panel tells you your total cholesterol, LDL, HDL, and triglycerides. It does not tell you the size or density of your LDL particles. It does not measure inflammation. It does not catch insulin resistance in its early stages. It does not show you what is actually happening inside your arteries right now. It gives you a partial picture and calls it complete.

What I recommend instead:

Don’t just ask for “routine labs.” These are the markers most standard panels miss, and they matter most for women:

A Full Lipid Panel, specifically ApoB and Lp(a). Standard cholesterol numbers can look perfectly normal while dangerous plaque is already forming. ApoB measures the actual number of atherogenic particles in your blood, and Lp(a) is a genetically driven risk factor that standard panels never test for. You could have a “normal” LDL and an Lp(a) that puts you at significantly elevated risk. You would never know without asking.

Highly Sensitive CRP (hs-CRP) to measure systemic inflammation. Inflammation is one of the most significant and most overlooked drivers of cardiovascular disease in women, and it does not show up anywhere on a standard panel.

Hemoglobin A1c to monitor your long-term metabolic health. Guidelines recommend this starting at age 45 or earlier if you have risk factors. I recommend knowing this number well before then.

Fasting Insulin, because most women are years into insulin resistance before their A1c ever looks abnormal. This is the test that finds it while you can still reverse it. It is almost never ordered on a standard panel and it is one of the most important numbers you can know.

Homocysteine, an independent cardiovascular risk marker that is consistently missed in routine women’s care. Elevated homocysteine damages the lining of your blood vessels and drives plaque formation, and most women who have it have no idea because it is never part of a routine panel. The good news is it is often correctable with B6, B12, and folate.

Vitamin D, because low levels are consistently linked to increased cardiovascular risk and deficiency is extremely common, especially through the winter months here in North Alabama.

TSH, because thyroid dysfunction directly impacts your lipid levels and cardiac function and is far more prevalent in women than men. Hypothyroidism can mimic or accelerate cardiovascular risk and is frequently missed when it is not part of a routine workup.

And then ask about something most women have never heard of but should.

A Coronary Artery Calcium (CAC) score. Current guidelines from the AHA and ACC suggest considering a CAC score for intermediate-risk adults when the decision to treat is uncertain. In practice, that means many women who would benefit from this test are never offered it.

Here is what it is. A low-radiation CT scan, no contrast, no needle, done in about 10 minutes. It is the only test that shows what is actually happening inside your arteries right now. Not your risk factors. Not your family history. The actual state of your arterial walls today. It bypasses the outdated risk calculators that have historically underestimated cardiovascular disease in women. A score of zero in a woman with borderline cholesterol is genuinely reassuring. A high score in a woman whose routine labs looked fine is the kind of information that changes everything, while there is still time to act.

Most insurance does not cover it for prevention, but if you are in the Decatur or Huntsville area you can typically get one for under $150 out of pocket. That is a small price for that level of clarity.

If you want to go even further, ask about a Coronary CT Angiography, or CCTA. Where a CAC score tells you how much calcium is present in your arteries, a CCTA goes a step further and actually visualizes the arteries themselves, identifying both calcified and non-calcified plaque. That distinction matters because non-calcified, or soft, plaque is actually more vulnerable to rupture and more likely to cause a sudden cardiac event. A CAC score can come back at zero and still miss soft plaque entirely. The tradeoff is cost and access. A CCTA typically runs $500 to $1,500 depending on where you go, requires contrast dye and a higher level of imaging facility, and is harder to access. For most women starting their cardiovascular screening journey, a CAC score is the right first step. But if your CAC score comes back elevated, or if you have significant risk factors and want the most complete picture available, a CCTA is worth the conversation with your doctor.

We are losing too many sisters, mothers, and friends to a disease that is 80% preventable through evidence-based intervention and early treatment. Not because the tools don’t exist. Because nobody ordered the right tests.

You deserve better than that.

45% is a statistic. You are a life. The single most important thing you can do this week is find a provider who will actually look.

02/16/2026

For many women, weight loss gets harder during menopause, even with medications that used to work.

It’s not just about willpower. And it’s not just about injections.

New research shows that hormonal health may be the missing link.

A recent Mayo Clinic study found that postmenopausal women using menopause hormone therapy lost 35% more weight with tirzepatide than those using medication alone. That’s because estrogen plays a key role in metabolism, insulin sensitivity, and how fullness signals work in the brain.

When hormones are out of balance, weight loss treatments may not perform the way they should.

This is why we believe weight loss and hormone health should never be treated separately.

If your progress has stalled or you feel like your body has changed in ways you don’t understand, this may explain why.

Read the full blog here:

Explore the connection between hormones and weight loss. Find out how Menopause Hormone Therapy can enhance weight loss results.

02/15/2026

No, seriously–where are you?? We miss you + always want to make sure you’re okay 🫶Things happen so let us know how we can help!

02/15/2026

Every visit matters to us, and reviews like this mean the world to our team.

We believe healthcare should feel personal, unhurried, and supportive. Our goal is always to help you understand your options, feel comfortable asking questions, and leave with a clear plan forward.

Thank you to our amazing patients for trusting us with your care.

02/13/2026

Which one is your fav? 😂

02/10/2026

Every pound you lose, your heart gets stronger. It doesn't have to fight so hard with every beat. Your blood pressure drops. Your risk of heart disease and stroke falls dramatically.
And suddenly, you have energy again. Real energy. The kind that carries you through your entire day instead of fading by noon. Your body isn't working overtime just to function anymore.
Your joints finally get relief. That knee pain, the aching back, the hip discomfort starts to fade because your body isn't carrying weight it was never meant to hold.
Your cells wake up. Insulin sensitivity improves. Blood sugar stabilizes. Type 2 diabetes risk plummets. Some people reverse it entirely and walk away from their medications.
Inflammation decreases throughout your entire body. That persistent achiness you've learned to live with? It doesn't have to be your normal.
You sleep deeper. You breathe easier. Your risk of cancer drops. Fatty liver reverses. Cholesterol improves. Everything starts working the way it's supposed to.
More years. Better years. Decades ahead where you show up fully. Active. Strong. Vibrant.

02/08/2026

Twinning is winning 👯👯👯

02/06/2026

Courtney is more than a beautiful face. When it comes to leveling up your wellness, she's got you covered!

02/03/2026

Most people associate medications like semaglutide with weight loss alone. But one of the most important findings from recent research has nothing to do with the scale.

The SELECT trial followed more than 17,000 adults with obesity and established cardiovascular disease for several years. These were individuals at high risk for serious health events. The goal was to see whether treating obesity itself could change real outcomes.

Beyond the well-known reduction in heart attacks and strokes, follow-up analyses showed something equally meaningful: people taking semaglutide had fewer hospitalizations overall.

Compared to placebo, there were fewer admissions for heart-related conditions, fewer hospitalizations for infections, fewer breathing-related admissions, and fewer surgical hospital stays. When you zoom out, this translated into roughly an 11 percent reduction in total hospital admissions.

That matters.

Hospitalizations are not just statistics. They represent disease progression, complications, lost quality of life, and enormous strain on both patients and the healthcare system.

So what’s likely driving this effect?

Semaglutide improves metabolic health at multiple levels. It reduces excess adiposity, improves insulin sensitivity, lowers inflammation, and supports cardiovascular function. Weight loss is part of the story, but the downstream metabolic improvements appear to be just as important.

This is why the SELECT trial changed the conversation.

It reinforced the idea that obesity is not a cosmetic issue or a willpower problem. It is a chronic medical condition that, when treated appropriately, can reduce serious health events and even keep people out of the hospital.

That doesn’t mean this medication is for everyone. It does mean that when used thoughtfully, in the right patients, and with proper medical oversight, the benefits can extend far beyond weight loss.

This is what evidence-based, outcomes-focused care looks like.

Not just fewer pounds, but fewer complications, fewer hospital stays, and better long-term health.

02/02/2026

I'm hopping on the trend too! So fun!

Go to ChatGPT and say: "Create a caricature of me and my job based on everything you know about me."

Drop yours below!

02/01/2026

Tag your work bestie who makes every task fun. Because teamwork makes the dream work.